Tips and tricks on How to clean dirty artificial grass.
Maintaining the appearance of artificial grass can be a challenge. With the right cleaning techniques, however, you can keep your artificial grass looking as good as new. In this article, we’ll provide comprehensive instructions on how to clean your dirty artificial grass and make it look like new again. We’ll cover everything from removing pet waste and stains to disinfecting and deodorizing your artificial grass.
Artificial grass is a great low-cost and low-maintenance alternative to natural grass. It looks healthy all year round and avoids grass death, holes and other issues common with natural grass. However, artificial grass quickly accumulates dirt and organic pollutants such as algae and lichen, owing to how much time it is exposed to the elements.
How to Clean Dirty Artificial Grass :Common issues
The most common issues that affect artificial grass surfaces include; algae growth, moss, lichen growth and general dirt accumulation. Algae growth is often the most noticeable, with moss appearing on the surface and potentially the membrane of the artificial surface. If left untreated for a prolonged period, the surface can become hazardous, with the algae forming a layer of algae that becomes very slippery when wet.
Moss also exhibits the same effect, and both issues worsen over time, although the organic nature of these two problems means they can be treated similarly. Both algae and moss growth are most common on artificial grass close to trees, plants and other fauna, where the spores are carried in the wind, settling on the surface and growing in wet conditions.
Infrequently used surfaces, such as artificial tennis courts in the winter, are also frequently afflicted with organic growths of this type, as the colony can develop undisturbed.
In our experience of How to Clean Dirty Artificial Grass , the colour of the algae growth can indicate its maturity and potential cleaning methods. Darker algae stains indicate a more developed growth, with green being juvenile and red requiring more treatments with biocides and power washes to clean effectively.
Lichen growth is separate because, whilst also an organic pollutant, being spread in the same way as algae and moss, its effects are different.
Lichen colonies do not form the same way as the other organic pollutants; instead of spreading across a wide area, lichen growth generally centralises in one specific location. It is characterised by brittle green or red growth on the grass blades’ sides. Again, a red or black growth would indicate a more mature growth, requiring a more intensive cleaning, although lichen growth does not generally form on the top of the surface and so does not pose a slipping hazard.
Unchecked lichen growth poses another issue that can permanently damage your artificial grass: the risk of discolouration. Long-term exposure to developed colonies frequently causes artificial grass to lose its colour, reducing the overall appeal of the surface, so it is imperative to resolve lichen growth as soon as possible.
Finally, general dirt and soot collection are the most common and easiest to resolve. This type of inorganic pollutant requires no special detergent treatment to fix, simply requiring a thorough but careful power washing treatment to lift the dirt off the artificial surface and clear it away.
How to Clean Dirty Artificial Grass; Methods and Equipment
A good team will appreciate that a successful cleaning depends upon two items: the expertise of the team and the quality of the equipment they use. Our team’s wealth of experience allows us to tackle any possible issues. We have dealt with a wide range of problems and have developed our methods over two decades to quickly and effectively mitigate issues.
Equipment is the second aspect of a successful job, with the technical element requiring a broad range of versatile tools to meet the demands of any job. The equipment list would include mechanical brushes, power washers, effective biocides, and other tools for cleaning the best possible.
A job usually follows a multi-step template; to clear the artificial grass surface, we typically use a strong leaf blower and a mechanical brush to clear away heavy debris, such as leaves and twigs. This would be referred to as the “coarse cleaning” stage. By the end of this stage, we would have aimed to clear the surface of any such debris, ready for the next cleaning stage. Our methods have been developed and proven effective over two decades of artificial grass cleaning.
Depending on the condition of the surface, we will adapt our approach, but we would usually apply a biocide to the entire surface, with a particular focus on problem areas. This would require several coats but does guarantee the best results available, not risking discolouring your surface as bleach would, but effectively destroying the root of the organic growth, greatly extending the life of your clean.
Following this successful application, we will rinse the surface to clear away the biocide safely and remove any additional dirt that may have accumulated.
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